Communists Must Work for the Interests Of the Vast Majority of People

WORKING for the interests of the vast majority of people of China and of the world is the objective of the Chinese Communist Party; it is also a guide to action to be followed by every Communist who is truly willing to dedicate himself to the communist cause, Speaking of the requirements for successors to the proletarian revolutionary cause, Chairman Mao has specified that whether to work for the interests of the vast majority of people or to work for the interests of the few constitutes an important distinction between Marxists and revisionists. He has taught us: "We must work for the interests of the vast majority of the people, for the interests of the vast majority of the people of China and of the world, and not for the few, not for the exploiting classes, not for the bourgeoisie or the landlords, rich peasants, counter-revolutionaries, bad elements and Rightists." Whether to work for the interests of the vast majority or for the few is, in essence, a question of taking which class' stand. We Communists must firmly take the proletarian stand, always persist in working for the interests of the vast majority of people and, following the Marxist-Leninist line, carry on the revolution for ever and never come to a stop. In the current great struggle to beat back the Right deviationist attempt to reverse correct verdicts, we can learn much from both positive and negative examples to enhance our understanding when we restudy Chairman Mao's teaching that Communists must work for the interests of the vast majority of people, make an analysis and see in whose interests those Party persons in power taking the capitalist road are working and penetratingly expose their class nature as representatives of the bourgeoisie.

Act of Betrayal by Capitalist-Roaders

In the historical period of socialism, what are the highest interests of the workers, poor and lower-middle peasants and other labouring people who make up the vast majority of people? They are: Under the leadership of the Communist Party, the vanguard of the proletariat, to persevere in continuing the revolution under the dictatorship of the proletariat until all classes and all class distinctions are abolished and communism is finally realized. On the eve of the founding of New China, Chairman Mao pointed out to the whole Party that winning victory in the democratic revolution was but "the first step in a long march of ten thousand li" (Report to the Second Plenary Session of the Seventh Central Committee of the Communist Party of China) and that a longer journey and greater and more arduous work lay ahead. After the socialist system had been established, he again taught us that we should apply the law of the unity of opposites to observe socialist society, that we must be aware of the existence of classes, class contradictions and class struggle and the danger of capitalist restoration throughout the socialist period, and that we must continue the revolution. It is precisely on this question that the arch unrepentant capitalist-roader in the Party Teng Hsiao-ping betrayed the basic interests of the proletariat and other labouring people. To protect the interests of the bourgeoisie, he did his utmost to consolidate and expand bourgeois right and pushed a revisionist line in a vain attempt to restore capitalism and put back the clock. In his important instruction on the question of theory, Chairman Mao has pointed out: "In a word, China is a socialist country. Before liberation, she was much the same as a capitalist country. Even now she practises an eight-grade wage system, distribution according to work and exchange through money, and in all this differs very little from the old society. What is different is that the system of ownership has been changed." He added: "Our country at present practises a commodity system, the wage system is unequal, too, as in the eight-grade wage scale, and so forth. Under the dictatorship of the proletariat such things can only be restricted. Therefore, if people like Lin Piao come to power, it will be quite easy for them to rig up the capitalist system. That is why we should do more reading of Marxist-Leninist works." What we have built is a bourgeois state without, capitalists, and bourgeois right which still exists is an important economic base for engendering new bourgeois elements. All this differs very little from the old society. Only by waging a prolonged struggle and persisting in restricting bourgeois right under the dictatorship of the proletariat can we gradually create conditions in which it will be impossible for the bourgeoisie to exist, or for a new bourgeoisie to arise, and attain the lofty goal of communism. Marxists always take a critical attitude towards bourgeois right, considering it a "defect" which must be restricted and gradually eliminated though it is something unavoidable in the historical period of socialism. The revisionists, however, regard it as something sacrosanct and spare no effort to consolidate and expand it. Why? Precisely because the existence of bourgeois right provides the soil and conditions for engendering capitalism and the bourgeoisie and serves as a sanctuary on which the revisionists rely for existence and as a tool for bringing about restoration and retrogression. Since bourgeois right covers up actual inequality with equality in form, its expansion therefore means expanding actual inequality. Those who yearn to take the capitalist road avail themselves of the commodity system and the principle of exchange through money to appropriate state or collective properties by legal and illegal means; they use bourgeois right existing in distribution and in mutual relations between people to promote material incentives in a big way and widen the differences between grades. It is from this soil which "differs very little from the old society" that new bourgeois elements emerge. Bourgeois right is not only the soil for engendering the bourgeoisie in society but, more important, the soil for gradually turning those persons in the Party who want to safeguard and enlarge the interests accruing from bourgeois right into the bourgeoisie in the Party. Those Party persons in power taking the capitalist road are new poisonous weeds sprouting from this old soil. After the victory of the October Revolution, Lenin pointed out: "As for those who look at the victory over the capitalists in the way that the petty proprietors look at it — “they grabbed, let me have a go too— indeed, every one of them is the source of a new generation of bourgeois.” (Session of the All-Russia C.E.C.) Capitalist-roaders are such "a new generation of bourgeois." They have become high officials with high salaries and living in comfort, and they do not want to carry on the revolution; instead, they not only try with might and main to keep what they have gained but do everything possible to grab more. Thus they are bound to protect the interests of the new and old bourgeoisie including themselves and engage in underhand activities to restore capitalism. Once they push a revisionist line and "lead the proletariat to accommodate itself to the selfish interests of the bourgeoisie and its political party" (Mao Tsetung: Introducing “The Communist"), they betray the proletariat, their class status is changed and they go over to the side of the bourgeoisie. This is fully exemplified by the personal history of Teng Hsiao-ping who turned from a "fellow-traveller" in the period of the democratic revolution to a representative of the bourgeoisie inside the Party during the period of the socialist revolution. Seriously tainted with ideas of bourgeois right, he joined the Communist Party in order to become a high official with a high salary and, so to say, to receive dividends for his shares. He regarded the revolutionary cause as a stepping-stone to high official posts. Having gained enormous interests both politically and materially after the victory of the democratic revolution, he had achieved his ultimate goal. When the socialist revolution has gradually deepened and sustained efforts have been made to restrict bourgeois right, he came forward as an apologist and defender of bourgeois right and did everything he could to safeguard it. He wantonly lashed out at the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and the socialist new things which have pounded away at bourgeois right, in a vain attempt to reverse the correct appraisal of the Great Cultural Revolution and settle accounts with it. He made use of bourgeois right to recruit a bunch of capitalist-roaders and knock together "restorationist legions" to restore capitalism. Taking advantage of bourgeois right in the relations between people, he sowed dissension between old and new cadres and attacked the revolutionary newborn forces. He used bourgeois right as a bait to lure intellectuals on to the road of "three famous' and three high's" (to become famous writers, famous actors and famous directors, and to get high salaries, high bonuses and high honorariums — Tr.) so that they would become professionally proficient but not socialist-minded. In doing all this, he actually served as a representative in the Party of the interests of the bourgeoisie and fundamentally betrayed the revolutionary interests of the proletariat.

Inevitable Struggle

Since capitalist-roaders in the Party represent the interests of the bourgeoisie and are the bourgeoisie inside the Party, they inevitably have sharp contradictions with the workers, peasants and soldiers, revolutionary cadres and revolutionary intellectuals. These contradictions are a concentrated expression of the struggle between the two classes, the two roads and the two lines during the socialist period and a reflection within the Party of class contradictions in society. The workers, peasants and soldiers, revolutionary cadres and revolutionary intellectuals want to continue the revolution, restrict bourgeois right, build socialism and realize communism, whereas the capitalist-roaders in the Party who are revisionist overlords are bent on safeguarding and expanding bourgeois right and restoring capitalism. The struggle between them is a struggle between two antagonistic classes. This struggle will exist for a long time to come in socialist society. Since the capitalist-roaders want to practise revisionism, they are bound to suppress the revolutionary demands of the revolutionary people. On the other hand, the workers, peasants and soldiers, revolutionary cadres and revolutionary intellectuals, who do not like the revisionist bigshots to oppress them, are bound to rise in struggle against the capitalist-roaders in the Party. It was precisely in these circumstances that the current struggle to beat back the Right deviationist attempt to re-verse correct verdicts started. When Teng Hsiao-ping, who set his mind on defending the interests of the bourgeoisie, hoisted the revisionist banner of "taking the three directives as the key link," brandished the big slick of "rectification" and spared no effort to completely destroy the fruits of victory of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, shouldn't the revolutionary people rise in resolute struggle against him and his followers? Chairman Mao recently pointed out: "You are making the socialist revolution, and yet don't know where the bourgeoisie is. It is right in the Communist Party — those in power taking the capitalist road. The capitalist-roaders are still on the capitalist road." Chairman Mao's instruction has incisively exposed the class nature of the capitalist-roaders as representatives of the bourgeoisie and explicitly told us that the capitalist-roaders are the bourgeoisie inside the Party during the period of socialist revolution. The arch unrepentant capitalist-roader in the Party Teng Hsiao-ping who fanned up the Right deviationist wind to reverse correct verdicts is the general representative of the bourgeoisie in our Party. Lenin taught us: All social problems must be examined "only by firmly holding, as to a guiding thread, to this division of society into classes, this change in the forms of class rule." (The State.) Using this "guiding thread" given by Lenin to make an analysis of the capitalist-readers in the Party, we can see very clearly that they represent in a concentrated way the interests of the old and new bourgeoisie and in the Party they are representatives of the bourgeoisie, and in this way we can recognize their profound class characteristics in various aspects — political, economic and ideological. Politically, why do they always take the reactionary stand of the bourgeoisie and oppose Chairman Mao's proletarian revolutionary line and the leadership of the Party Central Committee headed by Chairman Mao? Why do they always oppose the .socialist system under the dictatorship of the proletariat and obstinately push a revisionist line that advocates restoration and retrogression? Economically, why do they always spare no effort to strengthen and extend bourgeois right, practise material incentives in a big way. put profits in command and undermine the socialist economic base in a vain attempt to turn the socialist system of ownership into the capitalist system of ownership? And ideologically, why do they always stubbornly cling to the bourgeois world outlook, defend the feudal, capitalist and revisionist old ideas, old culture, old customs and old habits, use the doctrines of Confucius and Mencius to corrupt people and poison their minds, and create public opinion for capitalist restoration? All this can be explained only by their class essence in representing the bourgeoisie. With this continual deepening of the socialist revolution, "a new and higher form of struggle [waged by the proletariat] against the bourgeoisie is on the order of the day." (Lenin: The Immediate Tasks of the Soviet Government.) We must be fully aware of the harm and danger of the capitalist-roaders in the Party, wage a resolute struggle against them and ensure that the leadership of the Party and the state at all levels is firmly in the hands of genuine Marxist-Leninists and is not usurped by the bourgeoisie.

Persist in Continuing the Revolution

After the seizure of political power by the proletariat, the Communist Party becomes the ruling party. Whether or not our Party members, those Party cadres holding leading posts in particular, can fake a correct attitude towards the position, power and benefits given them by the Party and the people is an important question of principle which concerns whether or not they can continue the revolution and work for the interests of the vast majority of people. Chairman Mao has said: "Who is it that gives us our power? It is the working class, the poor and lower-middle peasants, the labouring masses comprising over 90 per cent of the population." "We Communists seek not official posts, but revolution. Everyone of us must be a thoroughgoing revolutionary in spirit and we must never tor a moment divorce ourselves from the masses." In seizing and wielding political power, the proletariat aims at using this powerful instrument of dictatorship to exercise all-round dictatorship over the bourgeoisie, so as to finally abolish all classes and all class distinctions and realize communism; no one is allowed to use the power given him by the people to work for the interests of the few, expand bourgeois right and add to the soil and conditions for engendering a new bourgeoisie. We have many outstanding Party cadres who act in accordance with Chairman Mao's teachings and consciously restrict bourgeois right. They do not divorce themselves from physical labour and the masses; though they hold official posts, they are just like ordinary people; and they do not abuse the power in their hands lo seek personal gains, nor do they seek privileges because of their high positions, but they work wholeheartedly for the interests of the vast majority of people. Some people, however, look at things from the bourgeois standpoint and act in a different way. They regard participation in the revolution as an investment from which they ought lo get "profits"; to them, exercising ruling power means being bureaucrats and, as bureaucrats, they arc entitled to privileges; they regard the material benefits given them by the people as something they are justified to enjoy and they sometimes even unscrupulously pursue selfish interests, thus turning the power in their hands into "capital." In the case of such people, the higher their position and the greater their power, the more rapacious and ferocious they become; consequently, they are bound to become capitalist-roaders in power practising revisionism. This merits our serious attention and high vigilance. If any cadre who is "only ‘out for’ the benefits accruing to membership of a government party and does not want to bear the burden of self-sacrificing work on behalf of Communism" (Lenin: The Workers’ State and Party Week), he is no longer a Communist Party member. If such people refuse lo mend their ways, they will sooner or later go against the masses and be dumped by history. In the final analysis, Communist Party members must redouble their efforts to remould their world outlook, if they are to work for, the interests of the vast majority of people. Chairman Mao has attached great importance to the question of remoulding world outlook and stressed that "not only those who have not changed their basic stand" "need remoulding"; "everybody should study and remould himself." (Speech at the Chinese Communist Party's National Conference on Propaganda Work.) If a Communist's world outlook is bourgeois, he will be easily influenced by revisionism and he will follow the revisionist line, side with the bourgeoisie, detach himself from the Party's objective and the Party's line and even degenerate into a revisionist element. Instances of this kind are not lacking in the history of the struggle between the two lines in our Party. Teng Hsiao-ping has given us a good lesson on this question. We must follow Chairman Mao's teachings, conscientiously study Marxism-Leninism-Mao Tsetung Thought in the course of carrying out revolutionary struggles; assiduously remould our world outlook, eradicate the influences of the ideology of bourgeois right and make a clean break with all traditional ideas. In this way, we will become Communist Party members who work wholeheartedly for the interests of the vast majority of people of China and of the world and dedicate our lives to emancipating all mankind.